Every year, for the town fiesta, my parents would invite people to celebrate with us. At the crack of dawn, Aling Rosa and her crew of cooks will start preparing the different dishes my mom had arranged for. Year in and year out, it seems we always have the same fare but my taste buds never got tired of them. Embutido, pansit luglog and palabok, rellenong bangus, lumpiang ubod, chicken pastel, kalderetang baka, menudo, fried chicken, and my favorite of all, lengua. Yum! Favorite meal enders are leche flan, maja blanca, sapin-sapin, bibingka galapong, pichi-pichi, palitaw, halayang ube and sherbet. Burp! Of course, the fiesta is never complete without the lechon. Those who come to our place know that Kuya Roland, would have also enslaved over the roasting process since daybreak. And the fruits of his labor will definitely not go unnoticed as it would lie majestically at the center table and Aling Sonia would masterfully slice and serve the choice cuts...and for the early birds, the coveted crispy balat! An authentic Filipino feast is definitely not vegetarian.
Recently a Pinay nurse hosted a post christening party of her firstborn. It was cause for great celebration and the not so ubiquitous (here in Canada at least) lechon was the crowning glory of her buffet table. For the Pinoys like me, it enticed our gustatory senses. It wasn't a strictly Filipino gathering however. There was a number of locals who were quite awe and even grief stricken over the current state of affairs of that resplendent (it was really enticingly shiny) animal that was now the focus of our carnivorous attention. "How was it killed?" "Poor pig." "Did it experience pain?" They had gathered around it, as if in prayer for the pig's passing. Momentarily, we were halted in our attack-eat mode. As they stepped away, we stealthily made our way and started to indulge. For the karaoke contest that followed, none of the locals really wanted to win. The prize? The roasted porcine's head.
Iba talaga ang Pinoy.
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